Companion Animal Care Articles from All-Creatures.org

Vegan Dog Food Improves Dogs’ Health: New 2022 Study

From Plant-PoweredDog.com
November 2022

I know world-leading veterinarians who have become huge proponents of vegan dog food because they have witnessed the skyrocketing cases of chronic diseases in their canine patients over many decades.

Many of us already know first-hand the health benefits our canine companions experience from feasting on a well-balanced vegan diet. But it’s always great when more studies come out in support of vegan dog food! The newest one to appear is a peer reviewed study published October 22, 2022 in The Archives of Clinical and Biomedical Research. For this study, 100 dog guardians feeding UK-based Omni vegan dog food for three – 12 months participated in an online Likert Scale-type survey assessing their dog’s health status in a variety of areas. [Reported Health Benefits of a Vegan Dog Food – A Likert Scale-Type Survey of 100 Guardians]

After feeding Omni vegan dog food for 3 – 12 months, the guardians reported statistically significant improvements in their dogs’ health in a variety of areas, including:

• Activity level
• Fecal consistency
• Frequency of defecation
• Frequency of passing gas
• Antisocial smell of flatulence (i.e., stinky farts)
• Coat glossiness
• Dandruff
• Skin redness
• Itchiness
• Crusting of the external ear canals
• Anxiety
• Aggressive behavior

One of the most interesting results that I found in this study was the improvement in the dogs’ fecal consistency. Twenty-eight out of 32 dogs (87.5%) who previously suffered from soft or watery stool improved with their stool becoming firmer. On the flip side, eight out of 11 dogs with previously hard or very hard feces also improved, with their stool becoming softer.

These findings support what I see all the time in my canine nutrition practice: that a plant-based diet greatly improves stool consistency and other clinical signs (gas, gurgling, etc.) in dogs suffering from chronic gastrointestinal conditions.

Skin inflammation, redness and itchiness are also common issues I see in meat-fed dogs. In this study, more than half (55.6%) of dogs affected with skin redness improved after switching to the diet, and in 44.4% the issue resolved completely.

Advocates of meat-based dog food often like to perpetuate the myth that plant-based foods are not palatable to dogs. During the two years of researching and writing my new book, The Plant-Powered Dog: Unleash the powers of a whole-food plant-based diet to help your canine companion enjoy a healthier, longer life, I found the exact opposite to be true. In fact, study after study showed that dogs readily take to eating plant-based foods. This latest study further supports my findings both with my own canine clients and in reviewing numerous studies.

In the Omni study, 82% of dogs “ate the novel plant-based food with enthusiasm when presented with it for the first time” (pp. 894). Ten percent of the dogs ate some of it immediately and then went back later and finished it. Another 7% ate it when it was gradually introduced over several days. One one dog refused to eat the vegan dog food unless it was mixed with other foods. This once again confirms that dogs find plant-based dog food highly palatable and have no issues readily accepting it.

Many people like to brush off the results of these types of guardian-reported studies as potentially biased or unreliable. I completely disagree. Why? Let me ask you this question: do you feel that you are tuned in to changes in your dog’s health as well as or even better than your veterinarian? I would say yes! After all, you are with your dog every day. You notice when their stool quality changes, their tummy gurgles or their skin is red and inflamed.

In fact, I know world-leading veterinarians who have become huge proponents of vegan dog food because they have witnessed the skyrocketing cases of chronic diseases in their canine patients over many decades. Of course randomized, controlled clinical studies are important to validate these types of results. That’s why their are loads of them in my new book. But what I’m also saying is that first-hand experience matters.

This study is just the latest showing that that a plant-based diet for dogs is a true win for our canine companions, all animals and the planet.

---

Return to Companion Animal Care
Read more at Vegan Cat and Dog Food